1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a cleaning unit and a printer equipped with the cleaning unit, and more particularly cleaning of a platen roller for printing an image on a medium.
2. Related Art
A printer for printing a desired image on a medium plane of a CD, a DVD, or the like, (for label printing) has hitherto been known. In a case where, in such a printer, a full-color image is transferred onto an intermediate transfer sheet through use of a platen roller and where the intermediate transfer sheet is brought into close contact with a label plane of the medium, to thus print the image, the platen roller must be periodically cleaned.
Cleaning of the platen roller is usually performed along the following procedures.
(1) Set the printer to a cleaning mode by means of an operation panel.
(2) Open a door of the printer, and withdraw a removal unit (a ribbon cartridge) for the intermediate transfer sheet.
(3) Rotate the platen roller by means of the operation panel of the printer.
(4) Press a cleaning plate soaked with droplets of cleaning fluid against the platen roller and slowly move the cleaning plate back and forth several times, to thus remove stains.
(5) Stop the platen roller, and again attach the removal unit for the intermediate transfer sheet.
A basic configuration of the printer is described in JP 2005-132048 A. Further, JP 5-104841 A includes separately providing an ink ribbon with a plurality of ink-soaked zones classified by color and a cleaning zone; and wiping, in the cleaning zone of the ink ribbon, ink adhering to a ribbon mask that partitions an ink ribbon from a sheet. JP 7-1809 A includes providing a cleaning tape in place of an ink ribbon in a cartridge case and attaching the cartridge case, as it is, to a printer, thereby cleaning a print head. JP 10-76738 A describes a cleaning cassette that houses a cleaning tape formed by shaping, into the form of a tape, Japanese paper or a synthetic resin film whose both surfaces are thinly affixed with Japanese paper. The cleaning cassette is set on a thermal printer, and the cleaning tape is taken up by means of a take-up reel, thereby clearing dirt or stains from the print head and the platen roller. JP 2005-306007 A describes a cleaning cassette having a cleaning sheet for cleaning the surface of a thermal head and the surface of a platen roller by means of causing the cleaning sheet to travel between the thermal head and the platen roller.
Under a method for cleaning the platen roller by insertion of the cleaning plate, the cleaning plate must be inserted while attention is paid to the structure of surroundings of the platen roller, and low workability is attained. The platen roller may also be damaged. Further, an individual difference may also arise in connection with a cleaning effect.